A New Beginning
by Clema
Summary: *POST MOCKINGJAY* Peeta has died in the capitol and Gale is the only one Katniss can really trust. Five years after the war they have a one-year old baby, Lily, and Gale has run away to the forest seeking a new life. Will Katniss find him? And if she does will she forgive him? Will Lily live through the journey? Rated T for language.
1. The Abandoned Snare

**I wish I had written The Hunger Games, but have not so it all belongs to Suzanne Collins except for this fragment of the story when Peeta dies while held in the capitol.**

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Katniss lay stretched out on the bed. Gale was lying asleep beside her cuddling with their baby monitor. She quietly got out of bed and grabbed the monitor, placing it beside his glasses on their bedside table. She couldn't hear Lily's whimpers like she usually did in the morning. Katniss tiptoed down the hall to Lily's room and found her sleeping. Gale appeared swiftly by her side, scaring her like he usually did. He was the only one who could sneak up on her. "Morning hun," he said with a kiss. Katniss smiles at him and undresses back in their room. She takes a brisk shower and dresses in her work clothes for the fields. Gale dresses in his usual hunting clothes. They had donated 3/4 of her winnings to President Paylor after she took the job five years ago. Now all they had to do to earn a little bit of money was star in propaganda that encouraged people to get a job. Katniss and Gale found little joy in this, so they decided that they would do very few propos and more hard-work. Gale jumped when he heardLily wail from her crib. He was still half undressed so Katniss left their bedroom with a hasty, "See you for supper."

Once she had dropped Lily off with Greasy Sae and her daughter, she walked to the fields. It was harvesting time and she was on apples. They were her least favorite to pick. The Mockingjays that nested there reminded her of her past, and the pride she was supposed to feel for being the most popular war hero. It was a sad old game that was getting old by the second. She entered the apple orchard and was greeted by a young man who originally lived in eleven, as all the other supervisors were. He handed her a basket that contained gloves and her row number. Heading to row 19, Katniss noticed a small girl in a tree. She was the perfect twin of Rue. The fuzzy memories from her first trip to the arena dominated her. Rue bleeding to death. Burying her in flowers. She remembered Rues grave which she visited after the war. On it it read; _Sing with the birds, and you'll sing with Rue._ She remembered her boot behind the tree. A tear rolled down her cheek and she collapsed on the ground.

"Katniss! Katniss! Katniss, are you okay?" Rue was by her side, which confused her like having an angel in hell. It was a wonderful feeling. Most of her friends had died in the arena or in the war. Gale and a few others were the only ones left. "Katniss?" Rue spoke out again. "Rue?" She asked. Her pained face showed little sign of joy when a tear fell from her eye. "No. I'm Rue's sister, Anabeth." Katniss wiped it away, but Anabeth's face reflected Katniss'. Loss had a special way of taking control. It grabs your heart and puts it in a cell in the deepest, darkest prison. She shook this out of her mind and stood up, watching little Rue walk back to her tree. "Wait," Katniss calls out to her. She turns around and Katniss tries to continue, but can't find her voice. "I know," Anabeth responds and turns to walks back to her tree.

On her way home that evening she spots an old friend of hers, Buttercup. The old cat was limping, mother was coming home to treat it soon. Katniss had promised Prim after she had died to care for it, so she fed it occasionally. It usually just caught itself some birds. A little girl with dark brown hail and some fresh pig approached him. She set the pig down in front of Buttercup and he gulped it down and rubbed up against her. She giggled and ran back to her mother who was calling her, disappearing behind a corner. Buttercup followed her, abandoning Katniss in the square.

Greasy Sae was waving her over to her house. "Shes been crying all day, suppose she misses you." She said with a smile. "Thanks so much for baby-sitting our Lily." Katniss replies. "KATNISS! KATNISS!" Johanna almost runs her over. She is Gales new hunting partner since I'm not allowed to be near a bow and arrow since I killed Coin. "We- we were out hunting. Hes gone. No one can find him. We separated for five minuets making sure to use the Mockingjays, then one time I couldn't hear him and when I went looking for him, all we found was a half set up snare." Katniss took a moment to register this, then took off, heading home. She grabbed the baby carrier and attached it to her back. She packed her game bag with food and supplies, also blankets and a small tent. Johanna and Greasy Sae were hovering over her, begging her to stay. It was no use, Gale had ran away and Katniss was going to find him

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**Authors Note: Okay guys, first chapter completed. This is a short one because I didn't know if you guys would like it so please review and tell me your thoughts. I will be updating this frequently most likely because I get way to bored in the summer. Thanks for reading!**

**-Clema**


	2. Moldy Bread

**I wish I had written The Hunger Games, but have not so it all belongs to Suzanne Collins except for this fragment of the story when Peeta dies while held in the capitol.**

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Katniss dashes away from Johanna and Greasy Sae in her living room. She ran through the broken cobblestone streets, passing by the mayor's house. It was half destroyed from the outside, but the inside's walls' were pitch black. A fire had started there and only stopped after the bombing. No one survived. She shook off the memories and continued on her journey. She almost passed Peeta's bakery but stood there, watching it. It was in the worst of conditions, but looked beautiful. It had vines covering up its burnt corners, the window panes lay empty with a still-standing sign reading; _open._ Everyone from the bakery but his brother, Eden, died. Eden went to work in the Capitol as a peace-keeper. Peace-keepers aren't harmful anymore. They are the justice system New Panem has now. When President Paylor got the job she changed everything, including the name Panem to _New_ Panem. Peace-keepers keep things in order with Laws. If you have some sort of conflict you are to take it up with a certain type of Peace-keeper called a judge. He or She will judge your situation and tell which one of you is right, then the other would have to pay up.

She had never entered the bakery since the bombing, Gale avoided it too. It was a shelter for bad memories. Her feet moved unconsciously toward the crisp wooden steps. They creaked and quaked, but she kept on moving. The door flew open when she touched it, sending shivers down her spine. It was very bright inside, as if a fire was lit for bread, but that was because the roof had been torn and burnt off. Moldy bread and cookies trashed the floor. A wail escaped her lips when she saw 24 year old version of Peeta sitting on the steps leading to nothing. He was crying and holding on to something. "Pe-peeta?" She stuttered. He looked up with a grieving face. I understood, "Eden, right?" He nodded and looked back down to something in his arms. "The capitol finally gave this up. I was going to give it to you, but then I saw you with Gale and..." He handed it to me and I saw what it was. It was his token. It was a Mockingjay medallion, modeled after her pin. She opened it to find the pictures of Gale and Prim with her mother. Tears welled in her eyes and she let out a chocked; "Thank you", then left him weeping in his burnt home.

It was too much, she wasn't ready for this. Running away with fresh tears in her eys, she put the necklace around Lily's neck and held her tightly. When she reached the woods, she ambushed one of the hunters hunting with a Bow and Arrow. She recognized the design as her father's. Gale had left at the wrong time, it scared her that she might not find him. She walked to their lake, remembering their last visit. Gale had made a picnic. Afterward they did a few fun things and they ended up with Lily nine months later. Then they had friends over and got married. She remembered being very nervous about it all, what Peeta would have thought. He broke her heart after his last interview. He looked wary and conflicted. Ceaser had asked him what he thought of Katniss after she became the Mockingjay. He said that he hated her. That she was stupid and just a young girl seeking attention. He said he'd rather die than marry her. Finnick was the only one that could and was allowed to comfort her. Gale was forced after a while, Coin thought I'd end up loving Finnick. When he died I thought it was her fault, so I guess she was right, I did love him.

Katniss heard rustling in the trees and stood up again. They were probably on her trail right now searching for me. Even if it is a free country and many of its citizens fled after the war was done, they still needed The Mockingjay for a symbol of hope. Hope was useless, it just made fantasies that could be impossible. She stood and carried Lily away from the lake. She walked to their old meeting place, a rock looking over a valley. The berry bushes that used to protect us from unwanted eyes were picked clean, a sign that Gale had passed through here. Looking through the valley she found an arrow, one from her high-tech bow Cinna had designed. The sky was darkening though, she would check it the morning. She lie down with Lily snuggled in her arms. The stars hovered above them, protecting them like a nightlight from monsters.

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**Authors Note: Okay guys, second chapter completed. This is yet another short one because I didn't know if you guys would like it so please review and tell me your thoughts. I will be updating this frequently because I get way to bored in the summer. Because I will update so often, they might be around 900 words each. Thanks for reading!**

**-Clema**


	3. Gone

The crickets silenced as a shadowy figure overlooked the mother and child sleeping. He watched them until the sun had completely disappeared behind the horizon. The figure crouched down beside them and gently pulled out the baby from his mothers grasp. It stirred, but didn't open its eyes. It injected a needle into the baby's arm, until she fell asleep again. It placed the baby in carrier attached to the soldiers back and silently skipped away. "Mission Completed, Ma'ma." The figure spoke into his earpiece when he was out of range. "Great job. Report back to base." She told it. The figure ran away from Katniss until the sun was risen.

Katniss wakes up sweating after a nightmare when she was searching for Peeta in the second arena. She looked down at her chest, expecting to find an energetic Lily, but it was bare of a child. She looked around in panic, but she couldn't spot her baby. Anger rose up in her chest. It was Gale who got them into this. "Fuck you, Gale!" She screeched out. She stuffed the blanket in her bag and ran to the arrow. It had a note attached to it; '_You're on your way.' _Muttering insults that she would say to Gale when she found him she looked around. She found the next arrow planted on top of a hill, and on and on. When she couldn't their meeting place anymore she found the last arrow with Gale holding it.

He could tell something was wrong for the way she looked at him. "Look, I'm sorry that I made it so discreet, but they would have stopped us if I'd have told you. I thought it was roman-" Gale started but was interrupted by a very angry Katniss. "Shes gone, Gale. Lily. I woke up this morning and she was gone. Ever think of that?" Gale's jaw dropped to the ground, "What! How could you have let this happen?" He asked her implicitly angry. "You're blaming his on me? You're the one who took off with out any clues what-so ever!" She screamed back. Gale let it go, "Tell me exactly what happened." She told him their story from leaving their home to that morning and when she was done Gale stood their stunned. Then he walked away, the same way Katniss had stomped over.

Most of their journey was walked in silence other than the Mockingjays chirping overhead. When they reached their old meeting place they found a letter placed in the berry bush. Katniss snatched it before Gale could and began reading outloud;

"_Dear Everdeen family,_

_Don't worry your precious Lily is safe. However, you will not be getting her back any time soon. Since you have chosen to run off, we still need an Everdeen to give hope to this deprived nation. We will exploit her adorable face however we choose. You will not get her back until she is 18, when she will be released from The Capitol. I would not recommend trying to 'rescue' her as she is heavily guarded. If you do choose that path though, we will do the same with both of you. We may play up your romance to full scale, or have you two make a larger family, who knows. _

_Thank you for your daughters participation and good luck on your new beginning,_

_President Paylor"_

"Looks like another adventure," Gale spoke with a smile. They wander back to district 12 warily. When they reach the fence, they walk along it for a while until they spot someone in the woods. She looks like a capitol solider from the badges on her chest and Katniss immediately pounce out from the bushes and pin her. "What do you know?" Katniss speaks through gritted teeth. Gale walks up behind her. She looks back at them excitedly, "Katniss! How are you? Its me, Delly!" Gale leaps away nervously and Katniss looks at him confused. "Whats up with you?" Gale looks at Delly, "Nothing," He lies. Katniss turns to Delly who is still pinned to the ground, "Whats up with him?" "He was looking for romantic support when you were in the arena, so we went out a few times." She replied truthfully. Katniss sighed, "Okay. But why are you here?" "Mrs. Paylor sent me on a mission to bring back your cat, but I can't find Buttercup anywhere." She watched me carefully. "Tell Mrs. Paylor that she can't have everything she wants like food served on a silver platter." Katniss spat at her, Gale offered no support. Delly lie there, shocked. "O-Okay Katniss." She began to get up and walk away but Gale stopped her, "Maybe we should deliver the message, its the least we could do for being a proud solider. You could stay her and remember old times." She looked at him confused, "I couldn't do that. Sorry." She walks away again, but Gale hits her in the head and knocks her out. The tie her up in a tree, and run to the trains.

They buy two tickets for district 2, but are stopped at the gates. "ID please Ma'am." Katniss looks confused, we're going to district 2 to see our mother, why do we..." She trails off. Gale hands the officer their IDs and he lets them through with a, "good luck." The hastily bored the train and arrive the next morning around 9 AM. The hadn't slept in a very long time and it was a miracle that they were still awake. They slept all the way on the ride to 2 and are awaken by a young attendant. They leave the train and head for Katniss' mom's house. "What are you doing here, Gale?" Beetee spots them from a Bakery, "oh and Katniss!" They walk over to them and explain their situation to him. He wishes them all the best of luck and they continue with directions to Helena's home (Katniss' mom), when they are greeted by three pigs. They walk around to the backyard and are surprised to see Helena and a man kissing on a bench beside a bed of Petunias. "Mother!


	4. Engaged

**Sorry for not writing for a while. I've been at camp for a while. Its kinda short because i didn't know if anyone still liked it.. Rate and Review for me to keep writing!**

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Helena and her... friend separate and she looks at Katniss with a shocked expression. "Katniss... I didn't know you were coming! Uhh," she got up and wiped her dress down. Gale held Katniss back with his arm and tried to calm her down. "Katniss, its okay." "No, Gale!" She screech back at him trying to hold in her tears. "Its not all okay! She just kissed someone thats not dad! Everything is wrong with this situation!" Helena looked down at the ground painfully, as if remembering the mine explosion that happened so far below them. She looked up and said softly, "Katniss, how about we prepare brunch together? Please?" She walked behind her mother through her house. When they reached the kitchen she broke into tears again, "How could you do that?" She sat down on a chair by the table that she recognized as one from their old house before the games. "It just happened, I know its different, but its made my happy. We're engaged." She showed her daughter the large diamond on her finger. "You didn't tell me!" Katniss realizes how distant her mother has been to her for so long. "You-you haven't called me in like two years. How long has this been going on?" Helena breaths in deeply, "A while." Just then the man walks in holding his stomach. "He punched me, that young man." Katniss grinned in her mind but stayed neutral inside. "Are you okay?" "Yeah, I'm fine." They spoke in the background. Gale comes in panting, "Sorry, I thought you'd like that." He whispers to Katniss.

They sit down outside on the porch and Katniss finally gets a good look at her to be step-father. He is this huge man with blondish hair and a large scar across his face. He notices her looking at it and chuckles, "Cato gave that to me." Helena looked at him fiercely. Katniss just sat still, shocked, "C-Cato? You knew Cato?" "I hope so, he was my son! That boy. I swear, he brought a different girl home every night! Player, that boy was. I do miss the giggling I hear down the hall everynight though. District two used to be a place of gangs so if I heard him in his room I'd know he was safe. Oh and Clove joined one after a while. Peacekeepers had trouble keeping her down, she was a fighter." The man looked pained to say the last line, "My name is Collin Hadley, father of Cato and Clove Hadley at your service."

Gale and Katniss were shocked, "You aren't mad at me for killing your children?" Katniss asked cautiously. "Oh no, it is the Hunger Games! I knew one of them would be dead by the end. Just don't know why they had to volunteer the same year. Kind of a dumb thing to do." He trailed off. Helena interrupted him as he started to say something else stupid, "Why are you here?" Gale spoke fiercely, "Paylor took Lily." He handed them the note and continued, "Lily is our daughters name. Shes almost one." Helena looked at them surprised, "You got married? You had a child? You didn't tell me!" Katniss stood up, "You never told me about hooking up with Cato and Cloves' dad, both of which tried to murder me!" Helena was angry now, "You got to start over, why can't I?" They sat down again, now at a stalemate. Gale broke the silence with an, "Can we focus on getting Lily back?


	5. Three Screens

After they heard the whole story that both Katniss and Gale told, Helena looked horrified. Collin looked like this happened everyday, because in district 2 it had. "Clove had been kidnapped at age nine," Collin starts, "Course by then she had been in training for two years. She was dropped off at our house the following morning. Trouble, she was." Helena asked, "Can you help me with these dishes Collin?" They walked to the kitchen empty handed. "Lets get out of here," Katniss says, "They aren't offering much help." She takes another bite from her strawberry to finish it off. "Okay." Gale replies and they leave the cozy backyard.

Moments later Collin comes back to apologize for his manners to find an empty table. "Dear, they left. How did you know they wold leave?" Helena chuckles, "I know my daughter and right now she means business." She disappears in the house when she hears a baby's cry. Her baby's cry. They had him a few months back. Helena had insisted on naming him Climo, a mixture of their lost daughters and son. Collin agreed and they loved him every minute of every day.

Gale walks hand and hand with Katniss until they reach the square. Its large and plastered with television screens. On three of them are pictures of Lily, their daughter. "We're too late," Katniss whispers. Rage boils in Gale's blood, "No. We aren't. Lets go get her." "Are you sure?" Katniss asks concerned. " This is the thing I've been most sure of in my life other than marrying you." He smiles and kisses her, then they ask around for BeeTee. A woman leads them there and BeeTee greets them at the door. "Hello again, what can I do for ya?" He asks. "We need a map of New Panem please." Without question he leaves them and reappears with a map. He bids them a simple, "good luck," as if he knows they're mission. They spread it out on the ground and mark their route to the forest of the Capitol. Normally they would travel by train, but they wouldn't be allowed a ride to their rescue mission.

Walking through these woods were different. There were one pine trees they prickled them as they walked. They walked in silence for a long time, then Katniss spoke, "I'm sorry Gale. I did this to us. I should have been more careful." "No. Its my fault for thinking that we could run away from this. There still is a limit to our freedom." Gale said. He hugged her tightly and they sat down. The sun was still high in the sky. He took out a pear from his backpack and split it with her. They started walking again but were faced with the ongoing heat. They had to stop countless times to cool down in the shade and their water was running low. But soon enough they came about a cool river than they rehydrated and cooled down in


End file.
